From the Fiery Furnace

Inevitably,all our pots looked better the next day,and I was very happy with my haul. That big black piece: you last saw it at the back of the fire-box- it became attached to the kiln-wall at an early stage of the firing,then fell into the middle of the fire-pit,where it survived its ordeal in one miraculous charred, crusty,subtly-coloured piece.It's porcelain,though you wouldn't guess it.It even holds water.It's one of my favourites.The vase on the other side of the fire-pit stayed on its feet,and came out with a good covering of ash glaze- I'll try to remember to post a picture.Clays used: Tom Coleman's excellent porcelain,mixed with 'Shigaraki feldspar' [really feldspar and quartz],and a 50/50 mix of the porcelain with my French stoneware [also with gobs of Shigaraki chunky little rocks],attempting to get a look like the clay they use in Shigaraki [and coming quite close]. The smallest tea-bowl in the picture is in fact made from real Shigaraki clay- a small lump given to me by a young potter while we were in that magical town almost a year ago.I'm off now to rest my mandibulum,and I suggest you do the same.